1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system for providing educational content based upon teaching and content standards, and associating the content with visual and audio instructions to combine the content with physical activity.
2) Description of Related Art
In the educational professions, there has been a variety of research directed to student motivation for learning and how students process information. One type of learning style has been described as kinesthetic learning and is directed to having the student carrying out a physical activity, rather than listening to a lecture or watching a demonstration. According to learning theory, students who have a predominantly kinesthetic style of learning are believed to “discovery learners”; that is they have realization through doing, rather than thinking before initiating action. These students may struggle to learn by reading or listening. In an elementary classroom setting, these students may stand out because of their need to move; their high energy levels may cause them to be agitated, restless, or impatient. Kinesthetic learners' short and long-term memories are strengthened by their use of movement.
Another learning style has been described as visual learning and is a style where ideas, concepts, and other information are associated with images. The auditory learning style is where the student learns through listening. Auditory learners must be able to hear what is being said in order to understand, and may have difficulty with instructions that are visual. Writings that are in logical order can be easier to understand. There is also the reading style of learning where the student is able to learn from the content of a writing.
When providing educational instruction, especially at the elementary school level, using a delivery format that contemplates each of the different learning styles would be advantageous. One attempt to provide such a learning method is shown in United States Patent Application Publication 2013/0089852 which includes “activity mats [that] allow students to physically move as they learn the relationships of abstract concepts, thus using more learning modalities (visual, auditory, motor, and kinesthetic) when practicing”. Further, United States Patent Application Publication 2009/0325133 discloses mats that can be arranged in sequential order to form a navigable path. The path is repeatedly traversed by the student. As the student becomes knowledgeable about the sequence, the path is arranged such that traversal is more difficult. The path includes test points for evaluating the student's knowledge of the sequence. The disadvantage of this technology is that is can only be used by one student at a time in a linear fashion. The same disadvantage exists for the technology described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,500,453 which requires a punching bag or floor mat.
One issue with learning systems, particularly automated systems, is that students can recognize and memorize patterns in the system without necessarily learning the content. This effect results in the students' responding to the patterns and not necessarily the content being presented.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide for an educational assistance platform incorporating educational content with physical activity instruction that can be used in the classrooms setting.
It is another object of the present invention to provide modulating content to prevent students from substituting pattern recognition for learning.